Gotham City, Mayor's Mansion.
In the treasure room, "Roger," who had more than twenty bodyguards surrounding him, suddenly reached for his collar and pulled it down firmly.
Rip—
The entire butler's clothes were instantly torn off and thrown aside, revealing a refined black suit underneath.
The butler's clothes changed, but his face also changed into someone else's, who looked decades younger.
In the blink of an eye, the formerly old Rogers turned into a young man wearing a black suit with a black top hat.
A jet-black cape flowing behind him made the air move.
At first glance, Phantom Thief Black Crow seemed like a clone of Phantom Thief, with the only difference being the color.
The only distinctive feature was the single eyeglass on his face, which did not reflect light unnaturally.
At least in the dimly lit treasure room, Phantom Thief Black Crow's monocle did not exhibit any reflective effects.
Therefore, unlike the Phantom Thief, he couldn't use the reflection to cover his face, and the mask still needed to be worn.
"This... what is this? The one from just now..."
There was a stunned look on everyone's faces.
It wasn't that they hadn't seen this before. They were familiar with this move, and some had witnessed it more than once.
It was the signature skill of the Phantom Thief—instant disguise!
"So, besides Phantom Thief, there are others in Gotham who possess this skill?"
This was something that every bodyguard on the scene was considering as if they were up against a very strong enemy.
The skill he just demonstrated was enough to prove that the person in front of them was not just a mere imitator of the Phantom Thief.
"It seems my disguise skills still have some shortcomings. I didn't expect the mayor to recognize me so quickly... But since we're at this point, let me introduce myself."
The man who completed the disguise spoke calmly while ignoring the more than twenty armed bodyguards surrounding him.
"My name is Black Crow, the Phantom Thief who will kill the Phantom Thief and take his place! If Phantom Thief is a white dove living in the spotlight while enjoying applause and cheers, then I am a crow lurking in the darkness, waiting for the right moment to strike."
Phantom Thief Black Crow introduced himself.
"Black Crow? A crow?"
On the other side, the mayor raised his eyebrows at Phantom Thief Black Crow's confident attitude.
"I have no interest in whatever nickname you want to be called, you filthy, lowly thief! And you people standing there, what are you doing? I didn't hire you to watch a show! Hurry up and do something..."
Just as the mayor was about to order his guards to kill Phantom Thief Black Crow, the latter suddenly spoke up.
"You wouldn't want them to shoot me, Mayor?"
Phantom Thief Black Crow smirked, his eyes filled with disdain.
"I suggest you not let them shoot unless you want to kill these loyal bodyguards."
"Do I need to remind you what the Phantom Thief does before committing crime?"
Do what?
What else could he do except investigate the area in advance and prepare some props and traps?
The mayor wondered.
'He might have set this room up as a trap to help him get out of this position. Impossible! I visit the treasure room almost every day, and I clearly remember the texture of every tile here. I should have found any traps a long time ago if there were any!"'
This Phantom Thief Black Crow is just bluffing!
The mayor thought while trying to use this thought to disturb his own judgment.
The mayor believed he had completely grasped the other's psychology and couldn't help but sneer in secret.
"Hmph, this guy must be planning to delay time first and then find a way to break through the encirclement. Sorry, I don't have the habit of giving people time to plan."
In a split second, the mayor immediately ordered the surrounding bodyguards.
"Ignore this madman's nonsense. Everyone, open fire!"
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sounds of more than twenty gunshots rang out one after another while echoing in the not-so-large treasure room.
The floor turned a deep red color quickly as blood splashed on it.
Phantom Thief Black Crow seemed to have met his end on the spot.
"No... this can't be... what is happening..."
Watching the shocking scene unfold before him, the mayor sat paralyzed on the ground, his face filled with despair.
"So, didn't I say it's best not to let them shoot, Mr. Mayor?"
Facing the mayor, Phantom Thief Black Crow stood unharmed with an attitude as if he had warned about this.
There are twenty or more armed guards lying in a pool of blood around Phantom Thief Black Crow.
They all held their guns and pointed them straight at Phantom Thief Black Crow.
However, as the guards pulled the triggers just seconds ago, the bullets didn't go towards Phantom Thief Black Crow.
They didn't even shoot forward. Instead, they reversed direction from the gun barrels while shooting through the casings and hitting themselves!
The mayor's more than twenty guards died by their own bullets!
"Mr. Mayor, you killed these people."
Phantom Thief Black Crow walked slowly to the mayor, who was still sitting in shock, and whispered softly.
"What did you just do? What do you want?"
The mayor forced himself to control his trembling body and asked through gritted teeth.
"I just told you, didn't I?"
Phantom Thief Black Crow frowned, his voice instantly turning colder.
"Phantom Thief always does a lot of preparation before any official crime. Although I dislike that fame-seeking guy, I agree that it's a good habit."
"So, before your return, Mr. Mayor, I disguised myself as the butler Rogers and inspected the mansion a few times. I made a little adjustment to these guards' guns."
Phantom Thief Black Crow smirked.
"To be honest, the guards you chose are really average. I took their guns in front of them while tampered with them and put them back. It was strange that none of them could sense anything was wrong."
"Tsk tsk, I'm afraid even the GCPD are more vigilant than these guards."
At this point, Phantom Thief Black Crow walked to a corner, picked up a fire axe, and then returned to the glass cabinet containing the 'Eye of the Sky'
He raised the axe high and slammed it forcefully onto the glass cabinet in front.
With a resounding crash, the glass cabinet shattered and left only a pile of glass shards on the ground.
"I know, with my clothes and the act of sending a warning letter, you must think I'm a fanatic fan of Phantom Thief while loving him to the point of wanting to imitate his crimes."
Phantom Thief Black Crow suddenly spoke.
"But the truth is quite the opposite!"
"I genuinely hate Phantom Thief from the bottom of my heart. This hatred is not even enough to be satisfied by killing him. I want to destroy everything about Phantom Thief while turning all his ideals into a joke and doing everything opposite to what Phantom Thief stands for."
On the other side, the mayor was listening to his speech and dared not even breathe.
He didn't even know if Phantom Thief Black Crow was speaking to him or to himself.
He also didn't understand why the Phantom Thief, who had never killed anyone, would attract the attention of such a person.
"If your target is the Phantom Thief, why did you come to me?"
The mayor asked with courage.
"...Mr. Mayor, do you not understand human language? I've said it several times already!"
Phantom Thief Black Crow's expression darkened as he reached into the broken glass cabinet and grabbed the 'Eye of the Sky.'
"I want to kill Kid; from the beginning to the end, that's my only goal."
...
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